Miracle

11:03 AM | BY ZeroDivide EDIT
A miracle is an event not explicable by natural or scientific laws.[1] Such an event may be attributed to asupernatural being (God or gods), a miracle worker, a saint or a religious leader.
Theologians say that, with divine providence, gods regularly work through created nature yet are free to work without, above, or against it as well.[2]
The word "miracle" is often used to characterise any beneficial event that is statistically unlikely but not contrary to the laws of nature, such as surviving a natural disaster, or simply a "wonderful" occurrence, regardless of likelihood, such as a birth. Other miracles might be: survival of an illness diagnosed as terminal, escaping a life-threatening situation or 'beating the odds'. Some coincidences may be seen as miracles.[3]

Explanations[edit]

Supernatural acts[edit]

A miracle is a phenomenon not explained by known laws of nature. Criteria for classifying an event as a miracle vary. Often a religious text, such as the Bible orQuran, states that a miracle occurred, and believers accept this as a fact. Many religious believers hold that, in the absence of a plausible scientific theory, the best explanation for these events is that they were performed by a supernatural being, and cite this as evidence for the existence of a god or gods.
Others suggest that God may work with the laws of nature to perform what people see as miracles.[4] Some theologians say that, with divine providence, God regularly works through created nature yet is free to work without, above, or against it as well.[2]

Law of truly large numbers[edit]

Main articles: Law of truly large numbers and Littlewood's law
British mathematician J. E. Littlewood suggested that individuals should statistically expect one-in-a-million events ("miracles") to happen to them at the rate of about one per month. By Littlewood's definition, seemingly miraculous events are actually commonplace.

Philosophical explanations[edit]

Aristotelian and Neo-Aristotelian[edit]

The Aristotelian view of God does not include direct intervention in the order of the natural world. Jewish neo-Aristotelian philosophers, who are still influential today, include Maimonides, Samuel ben Judah ibn Tibbon, and Gersonides. Directly or indirectly, their views are still prevalent in much of the religious Jewish community.

Baruch Spinoza[edit]

See also: Epistemic theory of miracles
In his Tractatus Theologico-Politicus Spinoza claims that miracles are merely lawlike events whose causes we are ignorant of. We should not treat them as having no cause or of having a cause immediately available. Rather the miracle is for combating the ignorance it entails, like a political project.[clarification needed]

David Hume[edit]

Main article: Of Miracles
According to the philosopher David Hume, a miracle is "a transgression of a law of nature by a particular volition of the Deity, or by the interposition of some invisible agent".[5] The crux of his argument is this: "No testimony is sufficient to establish a miracle, unless the testimony be of such a kind, that its falsehood would be more miraculous, than the fact which it endeavours to establish."

Friedrich Schlelermacher[edit]

According to the Christian theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher "every event, even the most natural and usual, becomes a miracle as soon as the religious view of it can be the dominant".[6]

Søren Kierkegaard[edit]

The philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, following Hume and Johann Georg Hamann, a Humean scholar, agrees with Hume's definition of a miracle as a transgression of a law of nature,[7] but Kierkegaard, writing as his pseudonym Johannes Climacus, regards any historical reports to be less than certain, including historical reports of miracles, as all historical knowledge is always doubtful and open to approximation.[8]

James Keller[edit]

James Keller states that "The claim that God has worked a miracle implies that God has singled out certain persons for some benefit which many others do not receive implies that God is unfair."[9] "If God intervenes to save your life in a car crash, then what was he doing in Auschwitz?" Thus an all-powerful, all-knowing and just God, as predicated in Christianity, would not perform miracles.

Religious views[edit]

Buddhism[edit]

The Haedong Kosung-jon of Korea (Biographies of High Monks) records that King Beopheung of Silla had desired to promulgate Buddhism as the state religion. However, officials in his court opposed him. In the fourteenth year of his reign, Beopheung's "Grand Secretary", Ichadon, devised a strategy to overcome court opposition. Ichadon schemed with the king, convincing him to make a proclamation granting Buddhism official state sanction using the royal seal. Ichadon told the king to deny having made such a proclamation when the opposing officials received it and demanded an explanation. Instead, Ichadon would confess and accept the punishment of execution, for what would quickly be seen as a forgery. Ichadon prophesied to the king that at his execution a wonderful miracle would convince the opposing court faction of Buddhism's power. Ichadon's scheme went as planned, and the opposing officials took the bait. When Ichadon was executed on the 15th day of the 9th month in 527, his prophecy was fulfilled; the earth shook, the sun was darkened, beautiful flowers rained from the sky, his severed head flew to the sacred Geumgang mountains, and milk instead of blood sprayed 100 feet in the air from his beheaded corpse. The omen was accepted by the opposing court officials as a manifestation of heaven's approval, and Buddhism was made the state religion in 527 CE.[10]
The Honchō Hokke Reigenki (c. 1040) of Japan contains a collection of Buddhist miracle stories.[11]
Miracles play an important role in the veneration of Buddhist relics in Southern Asia. Thus, Somawathie Stupa in Sri Lanka is an increasingly popular site of pilgrimage and tourist destination thanks to multiple reports about miraculous rays of light, apparitions and modern legends,[12] which often have been fixed in photographs and movies.

Christianity[edit]

Main article: Miracles of Jesus
The gospels record three sorts of miracles performed by Jesus: exorcisms, cures, and nature wonders.[13] In St John's Gospel the miracles are referred to as "signs" and the emphasis is on God demonstrating his underlying normal activity in remarkable ways.[14] In the New Testament, the greatest miracle is theresurrection of Jesus, the event central to Christian faith.
Jesus explains in the New Testament that miracles are performed by faith in God. "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'move from here to there' and it will move." (Gospel of Matthew 17:20).
 After Jesus returned to heaven, the book of Acts records the disciples of Jesus praying to God to grant that miracles be done in his name, for the purpose of convincing onlookers that he is alive. (Acts 4:29–31).

Other passages mention false prophets who will be able to perform miracles to deceive "if possible, even the elect of Christ" (Matthew 24:24). 2 Thessalonians 2:9 says, "And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the Truth, that they might be saved." Revelation 13:13,14 says, "And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they sould make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live." Revelation 16:14 says, "For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." Revelation 19:20 says, "And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone." These passages indicate that signs, wonders, and miracles are not necessarily committed by God.
In early Christianity miracles were the most often attested motivations for conversions of pagans; pagan Romans took the existence of miracles for granted; Christian texts reporting them offered miracles as divine proof of the Christian God's unique claim to authority, relegating all other gods to the lower status ofdaimones:[15] "of all worships, the Christian best and most particularly advertised its miracles by driving out of spirits and laying on of hands".[16] The Gospel of John is structured around miraculous "signs": The success of the Apostles according to the church historian Eusebius of Caesarea lay in their miracles: "though laymen in their language", he asserted, "they drew courage from divine, miraculous powers".[17] The conversion of Constantine by a miraculous sign in heaven is a prominent fourth-century example.
Since the Age of Enlightenment, miracles have often needed to be rationalized: C.S. Lewis, Norman Geisler, William Lane Craig, and other 20th-century Christians have argued that miracles are reasonable and plausible. For example, Lewis said that a miracle is something that comes totally out of the blue. If for thousands of years a woman can become pregnant only by sexual intercourse with a man, then if she were to become pregnant without a man, it would be a miracle.[18][19][20]
There have been numerous claims of miracles by people of most Christian denominations, including but not limited to faith healings and casting out demons. Miracle reports are especially prevalent in Roman Catholicism and Pentecostal or Charismatic churches.

Catholic Church[edit]

See also: Marian apparition, Stigmata and Incorruptibility
The Catholic Church recognises miracles as being works of God, either directly, or through the prayers and intercessions of a specific saint or saints. There is usually a specific purpose connected to a miracle, e.g. the conversion of a person or persons to the Catholic faith or the construction of a church desired by God. The Church says that it tries to be very cautious to approve the validity of putative miracles. The Catholic Church says that it maintains particularly stringent requirements in validating the miracle's authenticity.[21] The process is overseen by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.[22]
The Catholic Church has recognised several events as miracles, some of them occurring in modern times. Before a person can be accepted as a saint, they must be confirmed as having performed two miracles posthumously. In the procedure of beatification of Pope John Paul II, who died in 2005, the Vatican announced on 14 January 2011 that Pope Benedict XVI had confirmed that the recovery of Sister Marie Simon-Pierre from Parkinson's disease was a miracle.[23]
Among the more notable miracles approved by the Church are several Eucharistic miracles wherein the sacramental bread and wine are transformed into Christ's flesh and blood, such as the Miracle of Lanciano and cures in Lourdes.
According to 17th century documents, a young Spanish man's leg was miraculously restored to him in 1640 after having been amputated two and a half years earlier.[24]
Another miracle approved by the Church is the Miracle of the Sun, which occurred near Fátima, Portugal on October 13, 1917. Anywhere between 70,000 and 100,000 people, who were gathered at a cove near Fátima, witnessed the sun dim, change colors, spin, dance about in the sky, and appear to plummet to earth, radiating great heat in the process. After the ten-minute event, the ground and the people's clothing, which had been drenched by a previous rainstorm, were both dry.
Velankanni (Mary) can be traced to the mid-16th century and is attributed to three miracles: the apparition of Mary and the Christ Child to a slumbering shepherd boy, the curing of a lame buttermilk vendor, and the rescue of Portuguese sailors from a violent sea storm.[25]
In addition to these, the Catholic Church attributes miraculous causes to many otherwise inexplicable phenomena on a case-by-case basis. Only after all other possible explanations have proven inadequate may the Church assume Divine intervention and declare the miracle worthy of veneration by the faithful. The Church does not, however, enjoin belief in any extra-Scriptural miracle as an article of faith or as necessary for salvation.
St. Thomas Aquinas, a prominent Doctor of the Church, divided miracles into three types in his Summa contra Gentiles:
These works that are sometimes done by God outside the usual order assigned to things are wont to be called miracles: because we are astonished (admiramur) at a thing when we see an effect without knowing the cause. And since at times one and the same cause is known to some and unknown to others, it happens that of several who see an effect, some are astonished and some not: thus an astronomer is not astonished when he sees an eclipse of the sun, for he knows the cause; whereas one who is ignorant of this science must needs wonder, since he knows not the cause. Wherefore it is wonderful to the latter but not to the former. Accordingly a thing is wonderful simply, when its cause is hidden simply: and this is what we mean by a miracle: something, to wit, that is wonderful in itself and not only in respect of this person or that. Now God is the cause which is hidden to every man simply: for we have proved above that in this state of life no man can comprehend Him by his intellect. Therefore properly speaking miracles are works done by God outside the order usually observed in things.
Of these miracles there are various degrees and orders. The highest degree in miracles comprises those works wherein something is done by God, that nature can never do: for instance, that two bodies occupy the same place, that the sun recede or stand still, that the sea be divided and make way to passers by. Among these there is a certain order: for the greater the work done by God, and the further it is removed from the capability of nature, the greater the miracle: thus it is a greater miracle that the sun recede, than that the waters be divided.
The second degree in miracles belongs to those whereby God does something that nature can do, but not in the same order: thus it is a work of nature that an animal live, see and walk: but that an animal live after being dead, see after being blind, walk after being lame, this nature cannot do, but God does these things sometimes by a miracle. Among these miracles also, there are degrees, according as the thing done is further removed from the faculty of nature.
The third degree of miracles is when God does what is wont to be done by the operation of nature, but without the operation of the natural principles: for instance when by the power of God a man is cured of a fever that nature is able to cure; or when it rains without the operation of the principles of nature.[26]

Hinduism[edit]

In Hinduism, miracles are focused on episodes of liberation of the spirit.[27] A key example is the revelation of Krishna to Arjuna, wherein Krishna persuades Arjuna to rejoin the battle against his cousins by briefly and miraculously giving Arjuna the power to see the true scope of the Universe, and its sustainment within Krishna, which requires divine vision. This is a typical situation in Hindu mythology wherein "wondrous acts are performed for the purpose of bringing spiritual liberation to those who witness or read about them."[27]
Hindu sages have criticized both expectation and reliance on miracles as cheats, situations where people have sought to earn a benefit without doing the work necessary to merit it.[27] Miracles continue to be occasionally reported in the practice of Hinduism, with an example of a miracle modernly reported in Hinduism being the Hindu milk miracle of September 1995, with additional occurrences in 2006 and 2010, wherein statues of certain Hindu deities were seen to drink milk offered to them.

Islam[edit]

A 16th-century Persian miniature painting celebrating Muhammad's ascent into the Heavens, a journey known as the Miraj. Muhammad's face is veiled, a common practice inIslamic art.
Main articles: Islamic view of miracles and Miracles of Muhammad
See also: Occasionalism
"Miracle" in the Qur'an can be defined as a supernatural intervention in the life of human beings.[28] According to this definition, miracles are present "in a threefold sense: in sacred history, in connection with Muhammad himself and in relation to revelation".[28] The Qur'an does not use the technical Arabic word for miracle (Muʿd̲j̲iza) literally meaning "that by means of which [the Prophet] confounds, overwhelms, his opponents". It rather uses the term 'Ayah' (literally meaning sign).[29] The term Ayah is used in the Qur'an in the above mentioned threefold sense: it refers to the "verses" of the Qur'an (believed to be the divine speech in human language; presented by Muhammad as his chief Miracle); as well as to miracles of it and the signs (particularly those of creation).[28][29]
To defend the possibility of miracles and God's omnipotence against the encroachment of the independent secondary causes, some medieval Muslim theologians such as Al-Ghazali rejected the idea of cause and effect in essence, but accepted it as something that facilitates humankind's investigation and comprehension of natural processes. They argued that the nature was composed of uniform atoms that were "re-created" at every instant by God. Thus if the soil was to fall, God would have to create and re-create the accident of heaviness for as long as the soil was to fall. For Muslim theologians, the laws of nature were only the customary sequence of apparent causes: customs of God.[30]
Sufi biographical literature records claims of miraculous accounts of men and women. The miraculous prowess of the Sufi holy men includes firasa (clairvoyance), the ability to disappear from sight, to become completely invisible and practice buruz(exteriorization). The holy men reportedly tame wild beasts and traverse long distances in a very short time span. They could also produce food and rain in seasons of drought, heal the sick and help barren women conceive.[31][32]

Judaism[edit]

Descriptions of miracles (Hebrew Ness, נס) appear in the Tanakh. Examples include prophets, such as Elijah who performed miracles like the raising of a widow's dead son (1 Kings 17:17–24) and Elisha whose miracles include multiplying the poor widow's jar of oil (2 Kings 4:1–7) and restoring to life the son of the woman of Shunem (2 Kings 4:18–37).
During the first century BCE, a variety of religious movements and splinter groups developed amongst the Jews in Judea. A number of individuals claimed to be miracle workers in the tradition of Elijah and Elisha, the ancient Jewish prophets. The Talmud provides some examples of such Jewish miracle workers, one of whom is Honi HaM'agel, who was famous for his ability to successfully pray for rain.[33]
Most Chasidic communities are rife with tales of miracles that follow a yechidut, a spiritual audience with a tzadik: barren women become pregnant, cancer tumors shrink, wayward children become pious.[34] Many Hasidim claim that miracles can take place in merit of partaking of the shirayim (the leftovers from the rebbe's meal), such as miraculous healing or blessings of wealth or piety.

Criticism[edit]

Thomas Paine, one of the Founding Fathers of the American Revolution, wrote “All the tales of miracles, with which the Old and New Testament are filled, are fit only for impostors to preach and fools to believe”.[35]
Thomas Jefferson, principal author of the Declaration of Independence of the United States, edited a version of the Bible in which he removed sections of the New Testament containing supernatural aspects as well as perceived misinterpretations he believed had been added by the Four Evangelists.[36][37] Jefferson wrote, "The establishment of the innocent and genuine character of this benevolent moralist, and the rescuing it from the imputation of imposture, which has resulted from artificial systems, [footnote: e.g. The immaculate conception of Jesus, his deification, the creation of the world by him, his miraculous powers, his resurrection and visible ascension, his corporeal presence in the Eucharist, the Trinity; original sin, atonement, regeneration, election, orders of Hierarchy, etc. —T.J.] invented by ultra-Christian sects, unauthorized by a single word ever uttered by him, is a most desirable object, and one to which Priestley has successfully devoted his labors and learning."[38]
John Adams, second President of the United States, wrote, "The question before the human race is, whether the God of nature shall govern the world by his own laws, or whether priests and kings shall rule it by fictitious miracles?"[39]
American Revolutionary War patriot and hero Ethan Allen wrote "In those parts of the world where learning and science have prevailed, miracles have ceased; but in those parts of it as are barbarous and ignorant, miracles are still in vogue".[40]
Robert Ingersoll wrote, "Not 20 people were convinced by the reported miracles of Christ, and yet people of the nineteenth century were coolly asked to be convinced on hearsay by miracles which those who are supposed to have seen them refused to credit."[41]
Elbert Hubbard, American writer, publisher, artist, and philosopher, wrote "A miracle is an event described by those to whom it was told by people who did not see it."[42]
Biologist and atheist Richard Dawkins criticises the belief in miracles as a subversion of Occam's Razor.[43]

See also[edit]

Notes and references[edit]

  1. Jump up^ Miracle
  2. ^ Jump up to:a b McLaughlin, R (May 2002). "Do Miracles Happen Today?". IIIM Online. Reformed Perspectives Magazine. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
  3. Jump up^ Halbersam, Yitta (1997). Small Miracles. Adams Media Corp. ISBN 1-55850-646-2.
  4. Jump up^ Sproule, R C (1992). Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. Tyndale. pp. 65–66. ISBN 0-8423-2001-6.
  5. Jump up^ Miracles on the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
  6. Jump up^ "Second Speech: The Nature of Religion". On Religion: Speeches to its Cultured Despirers. London: Paul, Trench, Trubner. 1893. p. 23.
  7. Jump up^ Hume and Kierkegaard by Richard Popkin
  8. Jump up^ Kierkegaard on Miracles
  9. Jump up^ Keller, James. "A Moral Argument against Miracles", Faith and Philosophy. vol. 12, no 1. Jan 1995. 54–78
  10. Jump up^ Korea: a religious history, James Huntley Grayson, p. 34
  11. Jump up^ Keene, Donald. Twenty Plays of the Nō Theater. Columbia University Press, New York, 1970. Page 238.
  12. Jump up^ "Somawathie Stupa". Wondermondo.
  13. Jump up^ Funk, Robert W. and the Jesus Seminar. The acts of Jesus: the search for the authentic deeds of Jesus. HarperSanFrancisco. 1998. Introduction, p. 1–40
  14. Jump up^ see e.g. Polkinghorne op cit. and a commentary on the Gospel of John, such as William Temple's Readings in St John's Gospel (see e.g. p. 33) or Tom Wright's John for Everyone
  15. Jump up^ Ramsay MacMullen, Christianizing the Roman Empire, AD 100-400 1984:23, 108.
  16. Jump up^ MacMullen 1984:40.
  17. Jump up^ Quoted in MacMullen 1984:22.
  18. Jump up^ "Are Miracles Logically Impossible?". Come Reason Ministries, Convincing Christianity. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
  19. Jump up^ ""Miracles are not possible," some claim. Is this true?". ChristianAnswers.net. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
  20. Jump up^ Paul K. Hoffman. "A Jurisprudential Analysis Of Hume’s "in Principal" Argument Against Miracles" (PDF). Christian Apologetics Journal, Volume 2, No. 1, Spring, 1999; Copyright ©1999 by Southern Evangelical Seminary. Archived from the original on October 26, 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
  21. Jump up^ Pathfinder.com
  22. Jump up^ 30giorni.it (Italian)
  23. Jump up^ "Pope Benedict Paves Way to Beatification of John Paul II".bbc.news.co.uk. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  24. Jump up^ Messori, Vittorio (2000): Il miracolo. Indagine sul più sconvolgente prodigio mariano. – Rizzoli: Bur.
  25. Jump up^ Velankanni shrine miracle
  26. Jump up^ Aquinas, St. Thomas. Contra Gentiles, lib. III cap. 101.
  27. ^ Jump up to:a b c David L. Weddle (2010). Miracles: Wonder and Meaning in World Religions. p. 35-70. ISBN 0-81479-483-1.
  28. ^ Jump up to:a b c Denis Gril, Miracles, Encyclopedia of the Qur'an
  29. ^ Jump up to:a b A.J. Wensinck, Muʿd̲j̲iza, Encyclopedia of Islam
  30. Jump up^ Robert G. Mourison, The Portrayal of Nature in a Medieval Qur’an Commentary, Studia Islamica, 2002
  31. Jump up^ The heirs of the prophet: charisma and religious authority in Shi'ite Islam By Liyakatali Takim
  32. Jump up^ SAINTS AND MIRACLES
  33. Jump up^ Mishnah Ta'anit 3:8 Hebrew text at Mechon-Mamre
  34. Jump up^ The encyclopedia of Jewish myth, magic and mysticism, Geoffrey W. Dennis, p. 49
  35. Jump up^ The Writings of Thomas Paine, Volume 4, page 289, Putnam & Sons, 1896OCLC 459072720
  36. Jump up^ Jeremy Kosselak (November 1998). The Exaltation of a Reasonable Deity: Thomas Jefferson’s Bible of Christianity. (Communicated by: Dr. Patrick Furlong). Indiana University South Bend – Department of History. IUSB.edu, Retrieved 2007-02-19
  37. Jump up^ R.P. Nettelhorst. Notes on the Founding Fathers and the Separation of Church and State. Quartz Hill School of Theology. Theology.edu Retrieved 2007-02-20.
  38. Jump up^ Letter to William Short (31 October 1819), published in "The Works of Thomas Jefferson in Twelve Volumes", Federal Edition, Paul Leicester Ford, ed., New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1904, Vol. 12, pp. 141–142.
  39. Jump up^ John Adams, letter to Thomas Jefferson, June 20, 1815
  40. Jump up^ Ethan Allen, Reason, the Only Oracle of Man, 1784
  41. Jump up^ "Ingersoll on Talmage.; The Brooklyn Clergyman's Creed Discussed Before a Large Audience.". New York Times. April 24, 1882. Retrieved 2014-01-03.
  42. Jump up^ Elbert Hubbard, The Philistine (1909)
  43. Jump up^ Richard Dawkins. The God Delusion

General references and books[edit]

  • Colin Brown. Miracles and the Critical Mind. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1984. (Good survey).
  • Colin J. Humphreys, Miracles of Exodus. Harper, San Francisco, 2003.
  • Chavda, Mahesh, Only Love Can Make a Miracle. Charlotte: Mahesh Chavda Ministries, 1990.
  • Krista Bontrager, "It’s a Miracle! Or, is it?", Reasons.org
  • Eisen, Robert (1995). Gersonides on Providence, Covenant, and the Chosen People. State University of New York Press.
  • Goodman, Lenn E. (1985). Rambam: Readings in the Philosophy of Moses Maimonides. Gee Bee Tee.
  • Kellner, Menachem (1986). Dogma in Medieval Jewish Thought. Oxford University Press.
  • C. S. Lewis. Miracles: A Preliminary Study. New York, Macmillan Co., 1947.
  • C. F. D. Moule (ed.). Miracles: Cambridge Studies in their Philosophy and History. London, A.R. Mowbray 1966, ©1965 (Good survey of Biblical miracles as well).
  • Graham Twelftree. Jesus the Miracle Worker: A Historical and Theological Study. IVP, 1999. (Best in its field).
  • Woodward, Kenneth L. (2000). The Book of Miracles. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-684-82393-4.
  • M. Kamp, MD. Bruno Gröning. The miracles continue to happen. 1998, (Chapters 1–4), Bruno-Groening.org

Further reading[edit]

Miracle in the Qur'an can be defined as a supernatural intervention in the life of human beings.[1] According to this definition, miracles are present "in a threefold sense: in sacred history, in connection with the Islamic prophetMuhammad himself and in relation to revelation."[1] The Qur'an does not use the technical Arabic word for miracle (Muʿd̲j̲iza) literally meaning "that by means of which [the Prophet] confounds, overwhelms, his opponents". It rather uses the term Ayah (literally meaning sign).[2] The term Ayah is used in the Qur'an in the above mentioned threefold sense: it refers to the "verses" of the Qur'an (believed to be the divine speech in human language; presented by Muhammad as his chief miracle); as well as to miracles of it and the signs (particularly those of creation).[1][2]
In order to defend the possibility of miracles and God's omnipotence against the encroachment of the independent secondary causes, medieval Muslim theologians rejected the idea of cause and effect in essence, but accepted it as something that facilitates humankind's investigation and comprehension of natural processes. They argued that the nature was composed of uniform atoms that were "re-created" at every instant by God. Thus if the soil was to fall, God would have to create and re-create the accident of heaviness for as long as the soil was to fall. For Muslimtheologians, the laws of nature were only the customary sequence of apparent causes: customs of God.[3]

Definition[edit]

A systematic definition of miracles performed by apostles can be found in the work of the Muslim scholar al-Īd̲j̲ī Mawāḳif, historian A.J. Wensinck states.[2] The main purpose of miracle is to prove the sincerity of the apostle and has to satisfy the following conditions:[2]
  1. It must be performed by God
  2. "It must be contrary to the usual course of things"
  3. It should be impossible to contradict it
  4. "It must happen at the hands of him who claims to be an apostle
  5. "It must be in conformity with his announcement of it, and the miracle itself must not be a disavowal of his claim"
  6. "It must follow on his claim"[2]

Sacred history[edit]

The Qur'an does not mention any miracle for Adam (Adem) as he was not supposed to convince anybody.[1] Sura (verse) 11 (Hūd) and 23 (Al-Mu’minoon)[4]mention miracles of Noah (Nuh), "The oven (tannur) out of which the water burst and announced the flood".[1] Hud, the first of five Arabian prophets of the Qur'an, prophet for the ancient tribe of ʿĀd does not have any particular miracle (thus according to historian Denis Gril prefiguring Muhammad).[1] See sura 7 (Al-A'raf)[5] for his response when he was rebuked for not producing a miracle.[1]

Muhammad[edit]

Main article: Miracles of Muhammad
According to historian Denis Gril, the Qur'an does not overtly describe Muhammad performing miracles. The supreme miracle of Muhammad is finally identified with the Qur'an itself.[1] However, Muslim tradition credits Muhammad with several supernatural events.[2] For example, many Muslim commentators and some western scholars have interpreted the sura 54 (Al-Qamar)[6] to refer to Muhammad splitting the Moon in view of the Quraysh when they had begun to persecute his followers.[1][7] This tradition has inspired many Muslim poets, especially in India.[8]

Qur'an[edit]

Main article: Qur'an and miracles
Muslims believe that Qur'an is miraculous by its nature in being a revealed text from God, and that similar texts cannot be written by human endeavor.

See also[edit]

According to historian Denis Gril, the Qur'an does not overtly describe Muhammad performing miracles, and the supreme miracle of Muhammad is finally identified with the Qur'an itself.[1] However, Muslim tradition credits Muhammad with several supernatural events.[2] For example, many Muslim commentators and some western scholars have interpreted the Sura 54:1-2 to refer to Muhammad splitting the Moon in view of the Quraysh when they had begun to persecute his followers.[1][3]

The Isra and Mi'raj (Arabic: الإسراء والمعراج.‎, al-’Isrā’ wal-Mi‘rāj), are the two parts of a Night Journey or Shob-e-Miraz that, according to Islamic tradition, the prophet of Islam, Muhammad took during a single night around the year 621. It has been described as both a physical and spiritual journey.[1] A brief sketch of the story is in sura 17 Al-Israof the Quran,[2] and other details come from the Hadith, supplemental writings about the life of Muhammad. In the journey, Muhammad travels on the steed Buraq to "the farthest mosque" where he leads other prophets in prayer. He then ascends to heaven where he speaks to God, who gives Muhammad instructions to take back to the faithful regarding the details of prayer. However, this story is contested as "the furthest" mosque at that time was nowhere near the City of Jerusalem.
According to traditions, the journey is associated with the Lailat al Mi'raj, as one of the most significant events in theIslamic calendar.[3]

Islamic sources[edit]

The event of Isra and Mi'raj are referred to briefly in the Qur'an. For greater detail, they have been discussed in supplemental traditions to the Qur'an, known asHadith literature. Within the Qur'an itself, there are two verses in chapter 17, which has been named after the Isra, and is called "Chapter Isra" or "Sura Al-Isra". There is also some information in Sura An-Najm, which some scholars say is related to the Isra and Mi'raj.[4]
Of the supplemental writings, hadith, two of the best known are by Anas ibn Malik, who would have been a young boy at the time of Muhammad's journey.

Qur'an[edit]

Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing.
—Quran, Chapter 17 (Al-Isra) verse 1[2]
And [remember, O Muhammad], when We told you, "Indeed, your Lord has encompassed the people." And We did not make the sight which We showed you except as a trial for the people, as was the accursed tree [mentioned] in the Qur'an. And We threaten them, but it increases them not except in great transgression.
—Quran, Chapter 17 (Al-Isra) verse 60[5]
And he certainly saw him in another descent,
At the Lote-tree of the Utmost Boundary –
Near it is the Garden of Refuge –
When there covered the Lote Tree that which covered [it]
The sight [of the Prophet] did not swerve, nor did it transgress [its limit].
He certainly saw of the greatest signs of his Lord.
—Quran, Chapter 53 (An-Najm), verses 13–18[4]

Hadith[edit]

The whole incident of Isra is mentioned in great detail in the following hadith narrated by Anas ibn Sa'sa'a:
The Prophet said, "While I was at the House in a state midway between sleep and wakefulness, (an angel recognized me) as the man lying between two men. A golden tray full of wisdom and belief was brought to me and my body was cut open from the throat to the lower part of the abdomen and then my abdomen was washed with Zam-zam water and (my heart was) filled with wisdom and belief.
Al-Buraq, a white animal, smaller than a mule and bigger than a donkey was brought to me and I set out with Jibreel. When I reached the nearest heaven. Jibreel said to the heaven gatekeeper, 'Open the gate.' The gatekeeper asked, 'Who is it?' He said, 'Jibreel.' The gatekeeper asked,' Who is accompanying you?' Gabriel said, 'Muhammad.' The gatekeeper said, 'Has he been called?' Jibreel said, 'Yes.' Then it was said, 'He is welcomed. What a wonderful visit his is!' Then I met Adam and greeted him and he said, 'You are welcomed O son and Prophet.'
Then we ascended to the second heaven. It was asked, 'Who is it?' Jibreel said, 'Jibreel.' It was said, 'Who is with you?' He said, 'Muhammad' It was asked, 'Has he been sent for?' He said, 'Yes.' It was said, 'He is welcomed. What a wonderful visit his is!" Then I met Isa (Jesus) and Yahya (John the Baptist) who said, 'You are welcomed, O brother and a Prophet.'
Then we ascended to the third heaven. It was asked, 'Who is it?' Jibreel said, 'Jibreel.' It was asked, 'Who is with you? Jibreel said, 'Muhammad.' It was asked, 'Has he been sent for?' 'Yes,' said Jibreel. 'He is welcomed. What a wonderful visit his is!' (The Prophet added:). There I met Joseph and greeted him, and he replied, 'You are welcomed, O brother and a Prophet!'
Then we ascended to the 4th heaven and again the same questions and answers were exchanged as in the previous heavens. There I met Idris and greeted him. He said, 'You are welcomed O brother and Prophet.'
Then we ascended to the 5th heaven and again the same questions and answers were exchanged as in previous heavens. there I met and greetedAaron who said, 'You are welcomed O brother and a Prophet".
Then we ascended to the 6th heaven and again the same questions and answers were exchanged as in the previous heavens. There I met and greeted Moses who said, 'You are welcomed O brother and a Prophet.' When I proceeded on, he started weeping and on being asked why he was weeping, he said, 'O Lord! Followers of this youth who was sent after me will enter Paradise in greater number than my followers.'
Then we ascended to the seventh heaven and again the same questions and answers were exchanged as in the previous heavens. There I met and greeted Ibrahim who said, 'You are welcomed O son and a Prophet.'
Then I was shown Al-Bait-al-Ma'mur (i.e. Allah's House). I asked Jibreel about it and he said, This is Al Bait-ul-Ma'mur where 70,000 angels perform prayers daily and when they leave they never return to it (but always a fresh batch comes into it daily).'
Then I was shown Sidrat al-Muntaha (i.e. a tree in the seventh heaven) and I saw its Nabk fruits which resembled the clay jugs of Hajr (i.e. a town in Arabia), and its leaves were like the ears of elephants, and four rivers originated at its root, two of them were apparent and two were hidden. I asked Jibreel about those rivers and he said, 'The two hidden rivers are in Paradise, and the apparent ones are the Nile and the Euphrates.'
Then fifty prayers were enjoined on me. I descended till I met Moses who asked me, 'What have you done?' I said, 'Fifty prayers have been enjoined on me.' He said, 'I know the people better than you, because I had the hardest experience to bring Bani Israel to obedience. Your followers cannot put up with such obligation. So, return to your Lord and request Him (to reduce the number of prayers).' I returned and requested Allah (for reduction) and He made it forty. I returned and (met Moses) and had a similar discussion, and then returned again to Allah for reduction and He made it thirty, then twenty, then ten, and then I came to Moses who repeated the same advice. Ultimately Allah reduced it to five. When I came to Moses again, he said, 'What have you done?' I said, 'Allah has made it five only.' He repeated the same advice but I said that I surrendered (to Allah's Final Order)'" Allah's Apostle was addressed by Allah, "I have decreed My Obligation and have reduced the burden on My servants, and I shall reward a single good deed as if it were ten good deeds.
—Sahih al-Bukhari, volume 4, Book 54, Hadith number 429[6]
It is narrated on the authority of Anas b. Malik that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: I was brought al-Buraq Who is an animal white and long, larger than a donkey but smaller than a mule, who would place his hoof a distance equal to the range of vision. I mounted it and came to the Temple (Bait Maqdis in Jerusalem), then tethered it to the ring used by the prophets. I entered the mosque and prayed two rak'ahs in it, and then came out and Gabriel brought me a vessel of wine and a vessel of milk. I chose the milk, and Gabriel said: You have chosen the natural thing.
Then he took me to heaven. Jibreel then asked the (gate of heaven) to be opened and he was asked who he was. He replied: Gabriel. He was again asked: Who is with you? He (Jibreel) said: Muhammad. It was said: Has he been sent for? Jibreel replied: He has indeed been sent for. And (the door of the heaven) was opened for us and at first heaven we saw Adam. He welcomed me and prayed for my good.
Then we ascended to the second heaven. Gabriel (peace be upon him) (asked the door of heaven to be opened), and he was asked who he was. He answered: Jibreel; and was again asked: Who is with you? He replied: Muhammad. It was said: Has he been sent for? He replied: He has indeed been sent for. The gate was opened. When I entered 'Isa b. Maryam and Yahya b. Zakariya (peace be upon them), cousins from the maternal side. welcomed me and prayed for my good.
Then I was taken to the third heaven and Jibreel asked for the opening (of the door). He was asked: Who are you? He replied: Jibreel. He was (again) asked: Who is with you? He replied Muhammad ( peace be upon him). It was said: Has he been sent for? He replied He has indeed been sent for. (The gate) was opened for us and I saw Yusuf (peace be upon him) who had been given half of (world) beauty. He welcomed me prayed for my well-being.
Then he ascended with us to the fourth heaven. Jibreel (peace be upon him) asked for the (gate) to be opened, and it was said: Who is he? He replied: Gabriel. It was (again) said: Who is with you? He said: Muhammad. It was said: Has he been sent for? He replied: He has indeed been sent for. The (gate) was opened for us, and lo! Idris was there. He welcomed me and prayed for my well-being (About him) Allah, the Exalted and the Glorious, has said:" We elevated him (Idris) to the exalted position" (Qur'an xix. 57).
Then he ascended with us to the fifth heaven and Jibreel asked for the (gate) to be opened. It was said: Who is he? He replied Jibreel. It was (again) said: Who is with thee? He replied: Muhammad. It was said Has he been sent for? He replied: He has indeed been sent for. (The gate) was opened for us and then I was with Harun (Aaron) for my well-being.
Then I was taken to the sixth heaven. Gabriel (peace be upon him) asked for the door to be opened. It was said: Who is he? He replied: Jibreel. It was said: Who is with thee? He replied: Muhammad. It was said: Has he been sent for? He replied: He has indeed been sent for. (The gate) was opened for us and there I was with Moses (peace be upon him) He welcomed me and prayed for my well-being.
Then I was taken up to the seventh heaven. Jibreel asked the (gate) to be opened. It was said: Who is he? He said: Jibreel It was said. Who is with thee? He replied: Muhammad (peace be upon him.) It was said: Has he been sent for? He replied: He has indeed been sent for. (The gate) was opened for us and there I found Abraham (peace be upon him) reclining against the Bait-ul-Ma'mur and there enter into it seventy thousand angels every day, never to visit (this place) again.
Then I was taken to Sidrat-ul-Muntaha whose leaves were like elephant ears and its fruit like big earthenware vessels. And when it was covered by the Command of Allah, it underwent such a change that none amongst the creation has the power to praise its beauty.
Then Allah revealed to me a revelation and He made obligatory for me fifty prayers every day and night. Then I went down to Moses (peace be upon him) and he said: What has your Lord enjoined upon your Ummah? I said: Fifty prayers. He said: Return to thy Lord and beg for reduction (in the number of prayers), for your community shall not be able to bear this burden as I have put to test the children of Israil and tried them (and found them too weak to bear such a heavy burden).
He (the Holy Prophet) said: I went back to my Lord and said: My Lord, make things lighter for my Ummah. (The Lord) reduced five prayers for me. I went down to Moses and said. (The Lord) reduced five (prayers) for me, He said: Verily thy Ummah shall not be able to bear this burden; return to thy Lord and ask Him to make things lighter.
I then kept going back and forth between my Lord Blessed and Exalted and Moses, till He said: There are five prayers every day and night. O Muhammad, each being credited as ten, so that makes fifty prayers. He who intends to do a good deed and does not do it will have a good deed recorded for him; and if he does it, it will be recorded for him as ten; whereas he who intends to do an evil deed and does not do, it will not be recorded for him; and if he does it, only one evil deed will be recorded.
I then came down and when I came to Moses and informed him, he said: Go back to thy Lord and ask Him to make things lighter. Upon this the Messenger of Allah remarked: I returned to my Lord until I felt ashamed before Him.
—Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Number 309
Narrated Jabir bin 'Abdullah: That he heard Allah's Apostle saying, "When the people of Quraish did not believe me (i.e. the story of my Night Journey),
I stood up in Al-Hijr and Allah displayed Jerusalem in front of me, and I began describing it to them while I was looking at it."
—Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 5, Book 58, Number 226[7]
Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: Regarding the Statement of Allah – "And We granted the vision (Ascension to the heavens) which We made you see (as an actual eye witness) was only made as a trial for the people." (17.60) – The sights which Allah's Apostle was shown on the Night Journey when he was taken to Bait-ulMaqdis (i.e. Jerusalem) were actual sights, (not dreams). And the Cursed Tree (mentioned) in the Quran is the tree of Zaqqum (itself).
—Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 5, Book 58, Number 228
Narrated Abu Huraira: On the night Allah's Apostle was taken on a night journey (Mi'raj) two cups, one containing wine and the other milk, were presented to him at Jerusalem. He looked at it and took the cup of milk. Jibreel said, "Praise be to Allah Who guided you to Al-Fitra (the right path); if you had taken (the cup of) wine, your nation would have gone astray."
—Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 69, Number 482
Narrated Anas bin Malik: The Prophet said: "While I was walking in Paradise (on the night of Mi'raj), I saw a river, on the two banks of which there were tents made of hollow pearls. I asked, "What is this, O Jibreel?' He said, 'That is the Kauthar which Your Lord has given to you.' Behold! Its scent or its mud was sharp smelling musk!" (The sub-narrator, Hudba is in doubt as to the correct expression.)
—Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 8, Book 76, Number 583
It is narrated on the authority of Abdullah (b. Umar) that when the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was taken for the Night journey, he was taken to Sidrat-ul-Muntaha, which is situated on the sixth heaven, where terminates everything that ascends from the earth and is held there, and where terminates everything that descends from above it and is held there. (It is with reference to this that) Allah said:" When that which covers covered the lote-tree" (al-Qur'an, Iiii. 16). He (the narrator) said: (It was) gold moths. He (the narrator further) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was given three (things): he was given five prayers, the concluding verses of Sura al-Baqara, and remission of serious Sins for those among his Ummah who associate not anything with Allah.
—Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Number 329

Religious belief[edit]

The Isra is the part of the journey of Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem. begins at a time when Muhammad was in the Masjid al-Haram, when the archangelGabriel came to him, and brought Buraq, the traditional heavenly steed of the prophets. Buraq carries Muhammad to the Masjid Al Aqsa, the "Farthest Mosque", in Jerusalem. Muhammad alights, tethers Buraq to the Temple Mount and performs prayer, where on God's command he is tested by Jibriel.[8][9] It was told byAnas ibn Malik that Muhammad said: "Jibril brought me a vessel of wine and a vessel of milk, and I chose the milk. Jibril said: 'You have chosen the Fitrah (natural instinct).'" In the second part of the journey, the Mi'raj (an Arabic word that literally means “ladder”[10]), Buraq takes him to the heavens, where he tours theseven circles of heaven, and speaks with the earlier prophets such as Abraham (ʾIbrāhīm), Moses (Musa), John the Baptist (Yaḥyā ibn Zakarīyā), and Jesus (Isa). Muhammad is then taken to Sidrat al-Muntaha – a holy tree in the seventh heaven that Gabriel is not allowed to pass. According to Islamic tradition, God instructs Muhammad that Muslims must pray fifty times per day; however, Moses tells Muhammad that it is very difficult for the people and urges Muhammad to ask for a reduction, until finally it is reduced to five times per day.[3][11][12][13][14]
Pilgrims performing Tawaf (circumambulating the Kaaba) during a Hajj
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Masjid al-Aqsa, the furthest mosque[edit]

Thought to be referred to in the Quran as "The farthest mosque", al-Aqsa is often considered the third holiest Islamic site, after Mecca andMedina.The place referred to in the Quran as "the furthest mosque"[2] (Arabic: المسجد الأقصى‎, al-Masğidu 'l-’Aqṣà), from Al-Isra, has been historically considered as referring to the site of the modern-day Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. However, the al-Aqsa mosque in Jersusalem was not built during Muhammad's lifetime. The Jerusalem interpretation was advanced even by the earliest biographer of Muhammad – Ibn Ishaq – and is supported by numerous aḥādīth. The term used for mosque, "masjid", literally means "place of prostration", and includes monotheistic places of worship but does not lend itself exclusively to physical structures but a location, as Muhammad stated "The earth has been made for me (and for my followers) a place for praying ...".[15] When Caliph Umar conquered Jerusalem after Muhammad's death, a prayer house was rebuilt on the site. The structure was expanded by the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan and finished by his son al-Walid in 705 CE. The building was repeatedly destroyed by earthquakes and rebuilt, until the reconstruction in 1033 by the Fatimid caliph Ali az-Zahir, and that version of the structure is what can be seen in the present day.
Many Western historians, such as Heribert Busse[16] and Neal Robinson,[17] agree that Jerusalem is the originally intended interpretation of the Quran. Muslims used to pray towards Jerusalem, but Muhammad changed this direction, the Qibla, to instead direct Muslims to face towards the Kaaba in Mecca on the basis of having received divine intervention.

Modern observance[edit]

The Lailat al Mi'raj (Arabic: لیلة المعراج‎, Lailätu 'l-Mi‘rāğ), also known as Shab-e-Mi'raj (Persian: شب معراج‎, Šab-e Mi'râj) in Iran, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, and Miraç Kandili in Turkish, is the Muslim festival celebrating the Isra and Mi'raj. Some Muslims celebrate this event by offering optional prayers during this night, and in some Muslim countries, by illuminating cities with electric lights and candles. The celebrations around this day tend to focus on every Muslim who wants to celebrate it. Worshippers gather into mosques and perform prayer and supplication. Some people may pass their knowledge on to others by informing them The story on how Muhammad's heart was purified by an archangel (Gabriel) who filled him with knowledge and faith in preparation to enter the seven levels of heaven. After prayer (salat, where the children can pray with the adults if they wish) food and treats are served.[3][18][19]
The Al-Aqsa Mosque marks the place from which Muhammad is believed to have ascended to heaven. The exact date of the Journey is not clear, but is celebrated as though it took place before the Hijra and after Muhammad's visit to the people of Ta’if. It is considered by some to have happened just over a year before the Hijra, on the 27th of Rajab; but this date is not always recognized. This date would correspond to the Julian date of February 26, 621, or, if from the previous year, March 8, 620. In Shi'a Iran for example, Rajab 27 is the day of Muhammad's first calling or Mab'as. The Al-Aqsa Mosque and surrounding area, marks the place from which Muhammad is believed to have ascended to heaven, is the third-holiest place on earth for Muslims.[20][21]
Many sects and offshoots belonging to Islamic mysticism interpret Muhammad's night ascent – the Isra and Mi'raj – to be an out-of-body experience through nonphysical environments,[22][23] unlike the Sunni Muslims or mainstream Islam. The mystics claim Muhammad was transported to Jerusalem and onward to seven heavens, even though "the apostle's body remained where it was."[24] Esoteric interpretations of Islam emphasise the spiritual significance of Mi'raj, seeing it as a symbol of the soul's journey and the potential of humans to rise above the comforts of material life through prayer, piety and discipline.[10]
In view of the Islamic references from the Qur'an and Hadith, the Sunni Muslims reject these saying the Isra and Mi'raj was physical yet spiritual.[citation needed] Muhammad was taken to the Masjid Al Aqsa, where he performed prayer leading all previous prophets and then taken to the heavens in a journey.[citation needed]

See also[edit]

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